How a Startup Founder Delegates To Get 6 Hours Back Every Week

Startup founder Victor Chevrillon never imagined how transformative an assistant could be in helping him save time. Before becoming a Double customer, he had the misconception that assistants were only for executives at big corporations. After working with Double, he realized how wrong that idea was.

We had a candid conversation with Victor to ask him about his experience delegating. He shared how his mindset on delegating changed, the time he saved, and how his assistant provided him with critical support at work and at home.

Choosing to Work With an Assistant

Victor is the Co-Founder of Kloros, a company that helps revitalize forests. Managing a busy startup means that Victor’s schedule is packed. Yet, for a while, he didn’t even consider bringing on an assistant and simply soldiered on through hectic days. Why? Because he pictured assistants as a perk that only enterprise-level executives could access.

He was inspired to change his mindset after speaking with a colleague:

There was a moment when I was talking to a friend who was a Double client, and I didn't know it. As we were having a conversation, he mentioned this amazing thing happening – he hired a remote assistant part-time. It made me realize that I could do that, too. It's not reserved for CEOs of big companies –– I could actually try the service.

After the conversation with his friend, Victor began to reflect more deeply on his to-do list and realized how delegating could help improve his work-life balance: “I looked at my schedule, and I thought, ‘Yeah, there are plenty of things for which I could use an assistant.’ I hadn't really asked myself that question before; it forced me to think about it. I could have done this two years earlier. It's just that there comes a moment when you realize that it's an option.”

Accounting, HR & Personal Task Support

After reaching the epiphany that assistants are accessible and valuable to everyone, Victor began working with his Double assistant Cécile. He started delegating work and personal tasks to her right away.

On the personal side, Cécile helps with booking travel and other miscellaneous tasks. But some of her most significant impact occurred at the office.

What Victor Delegates to His Assistant

Accounting Tasks

• Accounts Payable

• Accounts Receivable

• Expense Reporting

• Utilities & Bill Inquiry

HR Duties

• Recruitment Screening & Coordination

• Recruitment: Initial Interview Calls

• Payroll

• Employee Benefits Management

• Onboarding

Administrative & Office Support

• Tech Research & Setup

• Document Drafting

• CRM Management

• Project Management

• Scheduling & Calendar

Personal, Events & Travel

• Travel Booking & Planning

• Event Coordination

• Personal Purchases

• Personal Research

• Household Support

Victor urgently needed Cécile to jump in and help with accounting tasks during a transition period when Kloros didn’t have a CFO, and she continues to assist with HR duties today.

Cécile helped me a lot with accounting, data entry, and retrieving receipts while we were looking for a CFO. She also helps me with recruitment; we don't have HR or people like that internally, so for initial screenings, reviewing resumes, making initial calls, and organizing appointments, it's quite helpful.

Victor also counts on Cécile to roll with the punches and jump in on new, unpredictable tasks that might come up: “There's also a lot of small tasks that I don't necessarily want to generalize into a category. Thanks to the Double app, I can just say, ‘Hey, I'll send this to you,’ and it will be done. I just click and send the request to Cécile, and it saves me from having to remember a task months later.”

The Delegating Experience

We asked Victor what it’s like working with Cécile. He told us that the relationship was easy and supportive from the start: “ I found it incredibly comfortable to delegate, even on the personal side, in areas where you probably feel more inclined to handle these things yourself. Cécile came on at a time when I was managing a move, and the fact that I could rely on her was fantastic. She was able to handle the migration of all my subscriptions, and it helped me a lot.”

Cécile also enjoys her experience working with Victor. She told us, “Working with Victor has been an absolute delight! From the get-go, our communication has been top-notch, making the entire experience seamless and enjoyable. I truly appreciate his clear instructions, consistent use of the Double dashboard, and his knack for setting deadlines that keep us on track. It's a pleasure to collaborate with someone who makes work feel like a breeze!"

Saving Time and Demystifying Delegating

Victor delegates about six hours to his assistant every week. He’s redirected those six hours to focus time, strategy, and growth-driving tasks. When we asked Victor about the impact of delegating to a Double assistant, he told us:

Double represents a significant time saver, allowing me to focus on interesting tasks that bring more value.

Toward the end of our conversation, Victor felt it was important to emphasize that there is no gatekeeping to delegating. Double helped him realize that startup founders can benefit from an assistant as much as enterprise leaders:

“Honestly, it's a great service. We often think, ‘I need to be a big boss in a big office to have an assistant.’ In fact, it's just someone coming to help out. And it's great to make that accessible. I think it's excellent, and I encourage others to do it.”